Surfing in India

by Derek DoddsJune 08, 2016

Surfing India: Less Known for Surfing, Well Known for Yoga

India has over 7500 km (4600 miles) of coastline, including that of the island groups, and this provides many opportune places for surfing. The largest waves are usually seen between May and September, the pre-monsoon and monsoon season.

Some of the more well-known spots for surfing are Mahabalipuram, Kovalam(Covelong) and Manapad in Tamil Nadu, Murdeshwara and Kapu Beach in Karnataka, Kovalam and Varkala in Kerala, Little Andamans and Lakshadweep.

Stand up paddling and surfing as in the current form was not a familiar sport to Indians, until recently when things started to change, starting with the coastal villages and the coastal communities.

“The kids here are born and brought up around these waters and this sport comes too easily to them,” says Madhumathi of Bay of Life Surf School “You power the board. It does not need any mechanism”, And once you start paddling, you will be introduced to the vast Eco-system that is right in your backyard.

There are mangroves, schools of dolphins; we’ve even spotted a whale shark once- says Madhumathi Ravi "There are, it must be said, big pluses and minuses about surfing in India. The greatest plus point right now about grabbing your surf board and heading to the ocean anywhere in the country, is that you will not have too much company.

That was a key factor that attracted Ed Templeton and his wife Sofie, the co-owners of Surf & Soul in Varkala. “The surf was good, the water warm, and the most attractive part was that there was nobody else in the water. Where else in the world do you get that?” says Ed.

Mahabalipuram Surf

On most days the waves are likely to be quite gentle—anywhere between 2 ft and 5 ft. The waters are good enough for most surfers. You can go stand up paddling any time of the year. The best time for surfing is between September and November and then again in March, April and May. June, July and August are only suitable for professionals.

India's beaches do not have a consistent life guard program except for a few regions like Goa or Kovalam in Chennai (run independently by Bay of Life Chennai) hence it's better you surf with a buddy at all times. Try already explored surf spots first: It's sensible to first cover familiar surf spots in India before attempting to search for new ones.

This way you get familiar to Indian environments, currents and local knowledge before attempting remote locations.

Watch out for Currents: It's better to familiarize yourself with rips and currents pertaining to the surf spot by asking around and talking to fellow surfers, local fishermen of that area.

Local Culture and Activities: Make sure you dress appropriately for different beaches in India, some regions are more orthodox than the others. Drinking on the beach, dressing provocatively might sometime invite unwanted trouble. Watch out for that fishing boat! Surfing Federation of India is the governing body for surfing in India. The State Associations are:

SWAT- Surfing & Watersports Association of Tamil Nadu

OSA - Orissa Surfing Association

KSA - Karnataka Surfing Association

Where to Surf in India

Kodi Bengre, Manipal

The Shaka Surf Camp, Manipal. On the west coast of Karnakata, this is the spot where Malayvia and Pathiyan set up the Shaka Surf Club. The beach is a great place to learn to surf, and, if you're lucky, spot dolphins.

"We rent out boards and have been doing a surf camp since Christmas," says Malayvia. "We've got a campsite and one side looks over a river and the other the sea. It's mainly a spot for beginners, and the waves are normally 3ft-4ft but in the pre-monsoon season the waves can reach 10ft-15ft. Over the monsoon season we close”.

Varkala, Kerala

Soul and Surf lesson in Kerala "At this beach town there's a great place called Soul and Surf which is run by a couple from Brighton called Ed and Sophie. It's similar to west coast of Karnataka in terms of surfing but it gets slightly bigger swells.

Soul and Surf, which was opened in 2010, is the first surf and yoga retreat in Kerala. Recently it has been running "pop-ups" in other locations, including Sri Lanka, the Andamans and even Devon, in the UK.

Soul and Surf Lesson, Kerala

If you are very much interested in surfing or yoga or better still a combination of the two– the only place you could think about is Soul and Surf, India. You can always surf at beautiful, tourist free beaches, points and jetties surrounding Varkala, Kerala each morning. You can also enjoy the sunset Yoga sessions each evening on the roof top.

Kovalam, Kerala

The Kovalam Surf Club The Kovalam Surf Club at Lighthouse Beach was founded in 2005 to encourage local children living below the poverty line to stay in education. The main rule for the kids who wanted to participate in the surf lessons was: "No school – no surfing!". The club also runs a surf school, rents boards and run tours for visitors.

Kovalam Surf Club,India

Pondicherry, Tamil Nadu

Kallialay Surf School.

Kallialay Surf School

There's also plenty of surf to be found on the south-east coast of India, with a couple of good places near Pondicherry where there are good waves, with stronger currents "and more barrelling". The Kallialay Surf School – which opened in 2009 and is one of the first surf schools in the area – is a good place to get your gear and it offers rentals, lessons and courses.

Mahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu

Mumu Surf Shop- Mahabalipuram

Also on the east coast, just south of Chennai, is another surf spot at the village of Mahabalipuram. This is a very hard point break, but it's really nice to surf. The surf shop there is run by a local, Mumu, who was brought up in a fishing family but was introduced to surfing by visiting Australians. He runs a school as well as offers surf board rentals and repairs.

Ishita Malaviya- The first female surfer of India

When Ishita Malaviya first picked up a surfboard, she could count all of India's native surfers on her fingers. Now, as interest in the subcontinent's untouched beaches begins to swell, India's first, and only, professional female surfer is at the heart of a flourishing scene she hopes can bring real social change to the country.

Ishita Malaviya

"I think surfing can be a very positive thing for India," she says. "For the girls who start surfing it's opening their eyes to a whole new world. There are so many barriers for them – especially once they reach puberty and their interaction with boys can become very limited – but when they're in the water it can break down some of those barriers."

Malaviya, who is sponsored by surf wear brand Roxy and runs the Shaka Surf Club on the west coast of Karnataka with her partner Tushar Pathiyan, first started surfing in 2007 after a chance meeting with a German exchange student at the university she was attending, who had a board.

Now, Malaviya and Pathiyan give lessons to travelers and – most importantly to them – the local villagers in Manipal. Over the new year they opened a surf camp – Camp Namaloha – that they hope will support their work to build a sustainable surfing community that's shared and enjoyed by Indians as well as tourists.

Ishita and Tushar Pathiyan

While the Shaka Surf Club already runs surf lessons and hires boards, the camp now offers a place for visitors to stay in the otherwise remote location, with tents and a beach shelter where travelers can enjoy barbecues and bonfires in the evenings. Pathiyan is keen to set up a Shaka Surf Club in India's other surfing states, such as Kerala and Tamil Nadu, and they are also in the process of putting together the first Indian surf team.

Last December, with the help of Quicksilver India, the pair released a short documentary: A Rising Tide. It tells the story of surfing in India and features many of the key characters who have contributed to its development.

"Indians are terrified of the sea," says Malaviya, pointing to the thousands of drownings that occur in the country every year. "But now all the kids in the village surf with us. Before, none of them were even swimming. They're conscious of the environment and know how to rescue people from the water. That's the kind of change I want to see."

According to Malaviya, too many Indians think of the ocean as a "dumping ground". "I want people to have a healthier relationship with the water," she says. "Once you start spending time in the water you develop a respect for it – you want to keep your beach clean."

Of course, finding ways to get more women into surfing is always something on her mind.

"I just couldn't believe that in a country of over a billion people I could be the first woman surfer," she says.

"But Tushar and I made a trip along the coast to meet other surfers at all the different spots and we asked if any other girls were surfing and they just said no. It's very humbling.

Now there are other girls surfing, I was just lucky enough to live near the beach so could go a lot; most of the girls don't get the opportunity to come so often." Malaviya, who grew up in Mumbai, was inducted into the surf lifestyle after visiting the Surf Ashram in Karnataka, founded by American surfer Jack Hebner and run by a group of surfing devotees who have since become known as the "Surfing Swamis".

Mumbai PC: toursimofindia.com

"We couldn't afford to stay at the ashram and the lessons were too much for us," says Malaviya. "But we made a deal with them to bring groups of students from the university in exchange for a group discount. That's where we came up with the idea of the Shaka Surf Club."

For the next two years Pathiyan and Malaviya shared one surf board between them, learning to surf by watching videos and picking up tips from the Swamis. "We'd take turns; when Tushar was in the water I'd just sit on the beach and clap," says Malaviya. By the time the couple had graduated from university in 2010 they were completely smitten.

"Our parents were like what? What is surfing?" says Malaviya.

"They said, you can surf, fine, but don't expect us to pay for it." The growing community of surfers in India (Malaviya estimates it is only 200-300 strong, excluding travellers) has steadily been catching the attention of pros from around the world.

In 2013, Malaviya was joined by a group of female surfers, including Crystal Thornburg-Homcy from Hawaii, who travelled there to make a feature-length documentary about the scene. Set to premiere at festivals this spring, the film, Beyond the Surface, looks at the ways surfing can be used to empower women in India and support positive change in the country.

"It was very different to what we were used to," says Thornburg-Homcy. "Women are often not allowed in the ocean for a variety of reasons: such as their dowry can be affected if they are injured or that families don't want their girls to have dark skin. The cities are a bit different, but this is what we found in the villages," she says.

Thornburg-Homcy adds: "I think when other women saw Ishita in the ocean that was really eye opening for them. She was breaking a lot of cultural boundaries."

Both Thornburg-Homcy and Malaviya expect the coming years to see even more growth in the sport in India, as more businesses see the potential in surfing as an attraction for travelers, and more locals head out to the waves.

"I'm not expecting it to become a Bali: we don't have such epic waves," says Malaviya. "But I'm just happy with things starting out slow and growing organically. My hope is just that there will always be a nice vibe."

The island has a unique archaeological history. I am sure you have seen you those megalithic statues or what is commonly known as Moai on large constructed stone platforms (also called Ahu). There are 887 of those mysterious statues on Rapi Nui.

Dude, I know you have seen them. it is unknown how or why ancient Polynesians carved more than 25 million pounds of stone to make the Moai.

Panama Surf School offers you the perfect surf tours to the best spots in the bay. Specially designed for city surfers who are stock in the city or visitors from other resorts who need some space during their business trip or family vacations.

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Size Chart

Surfboard Leashes

Buy a leash closest to your board size—i.e. for 6'4 surfboard you need a 6' leash.

All leashes are 7mm thick, competition leashes which are lighter/thinner 5.5 mm.

5'6 - 6 - 6 comp - 7 - 8 - 9 - 9 Calf - 10 - 10 Coil

calf (leash strap attaches to calf for larger boards)

coil (mostly for lake and open water boards)

Pioneer Day Boardbags - Fits One Surfboard

All boardbags have +2 inches. Thus a 6'6 board fit's perfectly in a 6'6 boardbag. All Pioneer bags have expandable fin gussets, so you can keep your fins on your board in the bag—or you can roll with glass-on fins.

Pioneer bags also have an exterior pocket and zip all the way to the nose.

Travel Bags - Fits Two Surfboards

All Global boardbags have +2 inches, so if you buy a 6'2 boardbag, the real length is 6'4—thus you have a bit of room to play.

Global Travel Bag Sizes:

Mini Simmons 6'2 - 6'7 - 7'6 | width 26"

Shortboard 6' - 6'7 - -7'0 - 7'6 | width 22"x

Longboard/Mal 8'6 - 9'6 | width 25"

Travel boardbags are 6'-8' inches deep to accommodate two boards—though you can travel with one in these bags without a problem—there are two interior pockets for leash, wax, and fins.

Travel boardbags have two padded boards separators and two pockets for your gear.

* Travel boardbags also have 13mm + 13mm of extra padding in the nose and tail.

Travel Bags with Wheels - Fits Two Surfboards

New in 2016 is the double travel bag with wheels. Sometimes you want a smaller bag with wheels, now you can have it. All Global boardbags have +2 inches, so if you buy a 6'2 boardbag, the real length is 6'4—thus you have a bit of room to play.

Global Travel Bag Sizes:

Mini Simmons 6'2 - 6'7 - 7'6 | width 26"

Shortboard 6' - 6'7 - -7'0 - 7'6 | width 22"x

Longboard/Mal 8'6 - 9'6 | width 25"

Travel boardbags are 6'-8' inches deep to accommodate two boards—though you can travel with one in these bags without a problem—there are two interior pockets for leash, wax, and fins.

Travel boardbags have two padded boards separators and two pockets for your gear.

* Travel boardbags also have 13mm + 13mm of extra padding in the nose and tail.

Boardbag Material & Hardware - All Bags

Side A of the bag is made from a strong density Rugged Eco Hemp exterior which is one tough fiber and naturally built to last with high impact padding protection with Rebound Foam Dynamics including open-to-nose technology.

Side B is the reflective (rental-car-roof-side) made from Reflective Energy Shield for "Cooler Surfboard Safeguard" protecting your surfboard from the sun's harmful rays made from an alloy-steel mesh weave.